{"id":27852,"date":"2022-08-11T07:17:57","date_gmt":"2022-08-11T05:17:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/?p=27852"},"modified":"2024-06-08T22:12:02","modified_gmt":"2024-06-08T20:12:02","slug":"moscow-tv-protester-plays-russian-roulette-with-risky-comeback","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/?p=27852","title":{"rendered":"Moscow TV protester plays ‘Russian roulette’ with risky comeback"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION<\/p>\n

A dispatch from Agence France Presse (AFP) published by Radio France International<\/a> (copyright 2022 AFP)<\/p>\n

Marina Ovsyannikova, who denounced Russia’s intervention in Ukraine during a live TV broadcast, knew that coming back to Moscow would be akin to playing a game of Russian roulette.<\/p>\n

Speaking to AFP in an interview, the 44-year-old mother of two, who returned from Europe last month, said she understood she could be arrested at any moment.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
\nPhoto Stringer AFP<\/center><\/p>\n

“I decided to play Russian roulette,” the former editor at Channel One television said, sitting on a bench in central Moscow in an elegant black dress.<\/p>\n

“If they make this decision, they will arrest me in a single day. It will only take a few seconds,” she said after dropping her 11-year-old daughter off for art lessons.<\/p>\n

In March, Ovsyannikova shot to prominence for interrupting a live TV broadcast to denounce President Vladimir Putin’s military intervention in Ukraine.<\/p>\n

In the months following her protest, Ovsyannikova spent time abroad, working for Germany’s Die Welt for three months.<\/p>\n

In early July, she made the “difficult decision” to return home when her ex-husband, an employee of Kremlin-backed broadcaster RT, sued her for custody of their two children.<\/p>\n

Since her widely publicised protest, Ovsyannikova has been fined several times and is due to appear in court again on Monday over discrediting the Russian army.<\/p>\n

She will also be attending custody hearings.<\/p>\n

Public criticism of Russia’s intervention in Ukraine has been outlawed, and most government critics have either fled the country fearing prosecution or ended up behind bars.<\/p>\n

Ovsyannikova said however she would continue speaking up.<\/p>\n

“I am a fighter, I continue to actively denounce the war,” she said cheerfully.<\/p>\n

“I do not plan to stop, I am not afraid despite the constant intimidation from the authorities.”<\/p>\n

‘Putin the murderer’<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since her return, Ovsyannikova came out to support opposition politician Ilya Yashin in court, staged a protest with a poster calling Putin a “murderer” and published anti-government posts online. She was briefly detained by police near her home in mid-July.<\/p>\n

Ovsyannikova, who does not currently have a permanent job, works as a freelancer for foreign media. Most of Russia’s independent media have either been shut down or operate from abroad.<\/p>\n

(Continued in right column)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Questions related to this article:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n 
\n Can the peace movement help stop the war in the Ukraine?<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The courage of Mordecai Vanunu and other whistle-blowers, How can we emulate it in our lives?<\/a><\/p>\n

How can just one or a few persons contribute to peace and justice?<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

(Continued from left column)<\/p>\n

he journalist, who worked for state TV for 19 years, said she had recently sold her car to bring in some extra money.<\/p>\n

Her protest has drawn hostile reactions from many quarters.<\/p>\n

Pro-Kremlin officials and former colleagues have accused Ovsyannikova of betraying her country. Critics in Ukraine and the West have claimed she is a spy still embedded in the Russian state media.<\/p>\n

Many members of the Russian opposition have blamed her for jumping ship in an opportunistic move and seeking fame.<\/p>\n

Ovsyannikova rejects the allegations.<\/p>\n

“It is convenient for the authorities to constantly create new conspiracy theories around me, people already don’t know what to believe,” she said.<\/p>\n

But Ovsyannikova admitted she had made mistakes in the past and has stayed “too long” in her comfort zone, without “finding the strength” to leave state television sooner.<\/p>\n

For her, inaction and indifference, embraced by many Russians, are a form of “self-preservation” fuelled by fear.<\/p>\n

“Our people are really very frightened,” she said.<\/p>\n

“Even those who understand the absurdity, the horror of what is happening prefer to stay silent.”<\/p>\n

In a throwback to the Soviet times, many Russians now criticise authorities only “in their kitchens” where nobody can hear them, she said.<\/p>\n

‘Unenviable fate’<\/strong><\/p>\n

Apart from facing criticism in Russia and abroad, Ovsyannikova said she also had to fight a “war at home.”<\/p>\n

She said her mother had become a victim of state propaganda, her son turned against her and she had to fight for the custody of her children.<\/p>\n

“My fate is unenviable,” Ovsyannikova said.<\/p>\n

She stressed, however, that her problems were nothing compared to the suffering of the Ukrainian people, faced with an offensive that has claimed thousands of lives and displaced millions.<\/p>\n

Authorities have not announced the opening of any criminal investigation against Ovsyannikova. But her repeat convictions of discrediting the Russian army may lead to a criminal conviction, punishable by up to 15 years in prison.<\/p>\n

Ovsyannikova believes that authorities will be reluctant to draw more attention to her case, pointing to her “solid international support”.<\/p>\n

Ovsyannikova said she would like to be able to leave the country together with her daughter.<\/p>\n

For now, she will stay in Russia.<\/p>\n

She is under no illusion that official pressure on her will grow.<\/p>\n

“They will intimidate me further,” she said.<\/p>\n

Using an old Soviet expression, she said authorities under Putin could punish just about anyone.<\/p>\n

“Give me the person and I’ll find the crime.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

FREE FLOW OF INFORMATION A dispatch from Agence France Presse (AFP) published by Radio France International (copyright 2022 AFP) Marina Ovsyannikova, who denounced Russia’s intervention in Ukraine during a live TV broadcast, knew that coming back to Moscow would be akin to playing a game of Russian roulette. Speaking to AFP in an interview, the … Continue reading Moscow TV protester plays ‘Russian roulette’ with risky comeback<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[75,15],"tags":[33],"class_list":["post-27852","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-europe","category-information","tag-europe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27852","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27852"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27852\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english.cpnn-world.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}